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Max had no idea.
Lexi hada response from her mom in her inbox that she read as she sipped from her first cup of strong Vermont coffee, another thing she’d missed about her home state.
So glad to hear the reunion was fun and you reconnected with Max. I can’t believe he’s a single dad to a seven-year-old. I’m sure he’s a wonderful father as he has a wonderful father—and grandfather. I can’t wait to hear all about it. Were there any sparks? You two were so cute together once upon a time. Dad and I have held out a secret hope that you might find your way back to each other.
“Whoa,” Lexi said. “Easy, ghost rider.”
Thanks for being so good about checking in and understanding how we worry about you. We promise to work on scaling that back now that you’re doing so much better. We’re thankful every day for your recovery, and we want to let you spread your wings and fly free. You’ve certainly earned that after everything you’ve been through. Enjoy the rest of your weekend in VT, and we’ll see you Monday. Love you! Mom
Lexi appreciated the effort they were making to back off from the critical caregiver role they’d played for so many years. Untangling the complicated emotions that came with serious illness wouldn’t happen overnight, and their family therapist had told them to be kind to each other as each of them worked through their trauma on their own timelines as they found a new normal.
That term,new normal, had come up a lot in therapy. For a time, Lexi had expected to return to the life she’d been leading when disaster struck. But then two years became four and four became six and her college friends graduated and got married and started families, while she cycled in and out of the hospital while waiting for a stem cell transplant with her mom as the donor. It had taken two more years until she was stable enough to have the procedure. Then it was postponed again while she battled a massive infection from the grueling chemo regimen that preceded the transplant.
After the transplant, she’d developed graft vs. host disease and several other life-threatening complications that had dragged out her time in the hospital by months.
The roller-coaster ride had been breathtakingly stressful, and then…
She’d lived.
The ending of the story was far less dramatic than the earlier chapters had been, which was why she and her family were still spinning as they lifted their heads up to see what’d been going on for everyone else while they were waging war against cancer. Everything else had faded to the background during those years. Once, during a particularly harrowing time in her illness, her dad had been shocked to realize a new president had been elected two weeks earlier and he hadn’t noticed.
That’s how all-consuming it had been. They’d lost track of everything and everyone who wasn’t the doctors and nurses keeping her alive.
Lexi typed a reply to her mom.It was great to see Max, and the same old sparks as always were still there, for me anyway, but I expected that. Not sure how he felt to see me, but he was shocked to hear where I’ve been and why I dropped off the map. I think he was hurt that I didn’t tell him what was going on. Maybe I should have, but I would’ve hated for him to see me down and out like I was so often during treatment—and you know he would’ve wanted to come.
I’m looking forward to seeing him again this weekend and meeting his son. He absolutely glows when he talks about Caden, which is very sweet. It’s nice to be back in Butler. I forgot how beautiful it is—and how cold! It’s only twenty-eight this morning, and snow is threatening. I hope it snows like crazy. I’ve missed snow.
Give Dad, Gram and Gramps a smooch from me and try to have a great weekend. Everything is GOOD—now go live. That’s an order. Love you. Lex
After a shower, she got dressed in more of the warm clothes she’d bought for this weekend. Some of them had been acquired through the Green Mountain Country Store’s catalog, which she’d looked forward to receiving every quarter while she was away. It was like getting a piece of home in the mail—and seeing Max’s handsome face in the pages of the catalog was an added extra.
Lexi was eager to get out in town and see everything and everyone who’d once made up her carefree childhood days. Her first stop was the diner, which had been vastly expanded in her absence. When she stepped inside, a million memories assailed her in one fell swoop that left her breathless. The scents of coffee, bacon and maple syrup along with the low hum of chatter and laughter took her right back to countless mornings there with her parents and grandparents.
“Come in and grab a seat at the bar,” a smiling blonde said as she circulated with a pot of coffee. “I’m Megan Abbott. What brings you to Butler?”
“I’m Lexi Bradshaw. I grew up here and am visiting for the weekend.”
“Welcome home.”
Lexi took a seat at the bar. “Thank you.”
An older man sitting next to her leaned in to whisper to her. “If you turn the mug over, Megan will fill it for you.”
Lexi turned over the mug. “Thanks for the insider info.” Then she did a double take. “Mr. Stillman? Is that you?”
“It is, but I’m afraid you have me at a disadvantage, young lady.”
“Lexi Bradshaw. Max’s friend.”
His eyes widened with recognition. “Oh, so you are. I see it now. You’re all grown up since the last time we saw you.”
“It’s been ten years since I was here, but it’s a relief that it’s mostly still the same. Except I’d have thought y’all would’ve gotten cell service by now.”
“That’s never gonna happen. People here like being off the grid.”
“Y’all are weird.”
“Where’d you pick up that Southern twang?”
